03/08/2025 09:50
Max Verstappen has requested that rain does not fall during the
Hungarian Grand Prix, with the Dutchman hoping for a dry race at
the Hungaroring. Red Bull has endured a disastrous weekend in
Hungary, to the extent that Verstappen had to settle for eighth on
the grid. Yuki Tsunoda suffered a fourth Q1 exit in the last eight
races, although was only 0.163s slower than his team-mate in the
first part of qualifying. Both Red Bull drivers have encountered
major grip issues, resulting in a dramatic loss of performance.
Discussing Red Bull's grip issues, Verstappen told select media,
including RacingNews365 : "It's not running all weekend, so in that
area [I feel] the same. "Sometimes you think the balance is
actually not very bad yet, in terms of a lot of understeer or
oversteer. "But you just have zero grip, you can't attack corners
and can't get on the gas. Nothing actually..." Following
qualifying, Verstappen was very vocal over the difficulties with
the RB21, similar to how he reacted to qualifying in seventh last
season at the Italian Grand Prix. Asked if qualifying felt as bad
as Monza last year, Verstappen stated: "In my opinion it was. It
wasn't long ago... Monza was also really bad. "I also have little
confidence that things will improve a lot during the race. I just
don't have any grip, so then you're just sliding. I also have more
tyre wear, so that doesn't really help either." Interestingly, the
weather looks set for a significant change ahead of the race, with
heavy rain forecast. This has usually been a blessing for the
four-time world champion; however, he is hopeful the showers stay
away from the circuit. "I never expected it to be our best weekend,
but this was too tough. With the feeling I have in the car now, I'm
also definitely hoping it doesn't rain."
